Festival turns spotlight on Maltese acting talent

With proper planning, the DramaFest, an annual series of theatre performances, has the potential to become an international festival and cultural attraction, according to Josette Ciappara, coordinator of DramaFest 2005.

"I envisage that the festival will grow and expand to become an established event on the island's cultural calendar. However, we need to plan ahead and establish the dates a year ahead if we are to secure the participation of theatre groups," she said in an interview.

This year's festival, the second organised by the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts, took off on the wrong foot after it had to shift from its original venue at St James Cavalier, Valletta to the Drama Centre at Maria Regina Junior Lyceum Blata l-Bajda, due to a faulty air-conditioning system at St James.

"We got the bad news that we had to shift on the very day we started technical rehearsals and after having actually launched and promoted the festival, so it served as a bit of a setback," Ms Ciappara said.

The move has affected attendances and Ms Ciappara is hoping that this weekend's performances will entice more people to watch the works laid on by 11 leading local theatre groups.

However, Ms Ciappara also believes that the festival coincided with numerous other cultural events, something which could be avoided with proper planning.

"Theatre groups had a mere two months to put together their productions, while others had already committed themselves to performances abroad. If we start planning now and establish the exact dates of next year's DramaFest, groups can be in a better position to do their own planning," she pointed out.

A positive person who refuses to be disheartened, Ms Ciappara believes that the DramaFest will evolve and grow and each year had been a learning experience to improve and do better.

"The festival is progressing each year and the different theatre groups have learnt to respect each other's work. They are also learning and exploring their potential to produce something challenging and exciting," she said.

"But the healthiest development I have witnessed is that companies have been intrigued to venture farther rather than sticking to the safety of their genre."

In the annual post-mortem following the festival the groups have explored the possibility of holding it at a different time of the year so as not to overlap with the numerous activities held in summer, and at a time when people were more predisposed to staying outdoors.

They also stressed the importance of knowing the dates of the festival beforehand to confirm their attendance and have more time to develop their production.

"This festival provides many theatre groups, that may not be so commercial, with the chance to perform and present their art. There is a lot of talent coming forward, who I believe will be tomorrow's news," she said.

Those who missed last weekend's performances can still enjoy the vast selection of pieces being staged between Friday and Saturday at the Drama Centre.

"All those who enjoy drama have a last opportunity to come to the Drama Centre this weekend to witness for themselves the creativity of Maltese writers, directors and actors," Ms Ciappara said.

On Friday the 7.30 p.m. set of performances features Is-Sur Borg Pathelin by theatre@alliance; Marbut by Aleateia and Eva by Du'. The second set, which starts at 9.25 p.m., will include Ma' l-Ahhar Tokki by imaginarts entertainment productions; Valaquenta by Ruben Zahra; and Bang Bang by Urbania. The audience may then participate in a theatre talk on the terrace.

On Saturday performances will kick off at 7.30 p.m. with P & Li... U l-Mummy by Stage Breeze; Int Guda by The Playhouse Theatre Arts Company; and Sin by Curtain Raiser Theatre Troupe. The second set at 9.25 p.m. will be a repeat of Friday's.

Sunday, the last day of the drama festival, opens its 7.30 p.m. set of performances with Il-Fenek tal-Grixti by Sleepwalkers; Earwigs by Faces Theatre Group; and Marbut by Aleateia. The last set of performances features Ruben Zahra, Urbania and Curtain Raiser Theatre Troupe.

Tickets cost Lm2 for each set of performances and pre-bookings can be made from St James Cavalier, Valletta on 2122 3200 between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. Tickets will also be available at the door of the Drama Centre.

DramaFest 2005 is sponsored by HSBC Bank Malta and forms part of Summer Arts Festival - Festival Malta 2005 organised by the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts.